Stokes, Michael --- "Editorial" [2008] JlLawInfoSci 1; (2008) 19 Journal of Law, Information and Science ii

• Editorial

Editorial

This is the last issue of the Journal of Law, Information and Science over which I will preside as editor. My colleague, Dr Brendan Gogarty, will be taking over from the next issue and will bring a new approach and fresh ideas. I wish him and the journal well and hope that he can make it bigger and more successful. I would like to thank everybody who has supported and assisted the journal over the years, members of the editorial board, contributors, reviewers and those who have offered encouragement and advice. Without your help, there would have been no journal and your patience and encouragement were greatly appreciated.

This issue contains four articles on very different topics. The first, by Anne Wallace, deals with the use of information technology, such as videoconferencing and broadband, to assist the courts deliver justice to remote areas of Western Australia. After considering the technology, especially remote witness technology, and the legal framework within which the technology operates, Wallace presents a case study of its use in three small towns in remote parts of Western Australia, Laverton, Warburton and Warakurna. She examines the rationales for using the technology and considers some of the issues involved in its use, especially in cases involving indigenous Australians who already feel alienated from the white justice system, and considers some of the issues arising from the use of the technology in this context. Her conclusion is that it is important to ensure that the technology is used in ways which do not make indigenous Australians feel more cut off from the Australian legal system.

In the second article, Lynden Griggs and Rohan Price consider the implications of the recent Federal Court case of University of Western Australia v Gray, a case about the ownership of an invention made by an academic staff in the employment of an academic institution. The article focuses on the extent of an employee’s fiduciary obligations to the employer. The authors are of the opinion that the case has the potential to lead to a reconsideration of the employment relationship in Australia, not only in relation to intellectual property rights, but in relation to other matters as well. They conclude that with universities no longer privileged employers and staff no longer completely free to choose what they research and where they publish, and with terms and conditions largely indistinguishable from other public sector employers, and a more directed workplace, employers have gained greater capacity to direct, but only in the context of specific hours and tasks as outlined in the contract of employment. Although employees may not owe their employers broad fiduciary obligations, an employer can incorporate rights of a fiduciary nature into a comprehensive contract of service by using clear words.

In the third article, Drs Kariyawasam and Guy consider the scope and content of contract and consumer protection law governing the buying and selling of goods on eBay. They argue that there is a mismatch between the operation of online auction sites such as eBay and the law of contracts, sale of goods and consumer protection, as embodied in the common law, the Sale of Goods Act and the Trade Practices Act, creating problems for the protection of consumers. This paper discusses the legal difficulties, for both vendors and purchasers, associated with transactions for the sale of goods on eBay. In doing this, it considers alternative strategies and methods that online vendors and purchasers can use to protect their interests and avoid some of the common traps into which users of electronic media may fall. The paper also examines whether current law sufficiently protects Australian consumers who utilise online auctions and whether additional regulation is desirable. It considers some judicial decisions made in Australia and overseas which have addressed the precise legal responsibility of eBay to online consumers. The paper concludes that there is a need for the better enforcement of the rights of online consumers.

The final article, by Brendan Gogarty and Meredith Hagger, examines the myriad of legal, social and ethical issues raised by the increasing use of autonomous and semi-autonomous ‘drones’ in a variety of milieus. The authors trace the historical impetus towards the development of this technology and examine in detail its current use in both military and civilian contexts. While the authors note many of the concerns and difficulties involved in the regulation of this technology, they do not come to any definite conclusions regarding appropriate legal responses to these issues. Rather, the authors invite further debate and discussion on the questions raised by this technology in the up-coming special edition of this journal on the topic of unmanned vehicles.

Michael Stokes

Editor